Full Moon Jacob's Point of View in New Moon
by Twilighterazngurl
Summary: This is New Moon through Jacob's eyes. Yes, everything happens, nothing is excluded--Bella still jumps off the cliff, and goes after Edward. A/N: I don't own this, the fabulous Stephenie Meyer does. Please READ AND REVIEW! :
1. Chapter 1

LONG NIGHT

_Ring-ring! Ring-ring! Ring-ring!_ The phone rang. I snored, then rolled over on my too-small bed. The action made me fall off my mattress, and I abruptly woke up. I heard Billy pick up the phone. I glanced at my clock. Who would be calling at this hour?

"Hi, Charlie. How's it going?" He mumbled, half-asleep himself.

Charlie? Did something happen to Bella? I got up and pressed my ear to my bedroom door. Whatever Charlie was saying didn't sound like good news. I heard Billy suck in his breath. He muttered something that I couldn't make out. I couldn't stand it anymore; I staggered out into the kitchen. Billy took no notice of me.

"Absolutely. I'll send out Sam."

Sam? What the hell was going on?

"Dad, what happened? Is Charlie okay? Let me come."

Billy saw right through me.

"Jake, stay home. You need your sleep. Bella's lost in the woods right now. Apparently, the Cullen boy left her there."

_Damn Cullen. _I was so pissed that I ignored Billy and walked right out the back door. Billy didn't try to stop me.

The air was cool outside. I wished my Volkswagen was finished. I broke into a run.

By the time I got to the Swans' house, it was already 3 in the morning. All the cars were starting to pull away. I walked through their front door, but Mrs. Stanley told me that Bella was sleeping, that she was okay. As long as she was okay, that was all that mattered to me. I felt relief.

I started walking home. A pair of headlights flashed by me, and I heard Mr. Weber.

"Hey, Jacob. Did you need a ride home?"

I was already exhausted, so I opened the passenger door of his car.

"Thanks, Mr. Weber. What exactly happened?"

Mr. Weber's face was grim.

"Well, it seems that…Bella took a walk in the woods behind the house with Edward Cullen, and she didn't come back after a while…she left a note saying where she was, but she never came back…"

I knew it. The filthy bloodsucker. I could feel my anger in my veins. But then, I felt better, knowing that the Cullens were gone. My emotions confused me.

"…and all of the Cullens left. We'll definitely miss Dr. Cullen…"

Whoa. What was that? _All_ of them left? Even Dr. Fang? This _had_ to make Bella unhappy.

Suddenly, Sam and his crew strolled by on the sidewalk. I became even more pissed off. What gave them the right to come here? Mr. Weber saw my expression as I glared at them.

"…Sam was the one who found Bella in the woods. They must know the forest really well…"

I kept a poker face all the way home.

I thanked Mr. Weber for the ride, then immediately fell back asleep. It felt like I'd been up forever.

After I got home from school the next day, I fooled around with Quil and Embry in the garage. We talked about Sam and his crew. Quil felt like Sam was always staring at him weird, giving him the creeps. That's exactly how I felt, too.

Life fell back into its normal rhythm—school, homework, fixing the Rabbit, school, homework, the garage. I went back to my normal routine. I still worried about Bella in the back of my mind.

However, Charlie kept calling Billy, pleading for help; apparently Bella was in a zombie-like stage. We had no idea what to do, or what it felt like. Neither Rachel nor Rebecca had ever dealt with this before. Bella wasn't sleeping, eating, reading…nothing! All she did was go to school, work her shift at Newton's' Outfitters…and that was it. She didn't even socialize with her other school friends anymore. Huh. The leech must have sucked her dry when they left. How could he hurt her so badly? How could he inflict pain on someone like Bella? What kind of monster was he? I hated Edward Cullen.

At La Push, Sam and his crew threw bonfires at night on the beach, probably celebrating the parasites' absence. I felt fury for them, too. They were celebrating what hurt Bella. It was so sick.

Charlie called even more constantly, saying that Bella didn't want to see anyone. As much as I wanted to see her again, I knew that I should give her time and space. Billy didn't forbid me from going to Forks anymore, but it felt wrong to go see Bella now, in her zombie stage. She didn't smile anymore, either, according to Charlie. I tried not to worry about her too much, knowing that when the time was right, she would be healed.

Autumn, then winter passed. The rain pelted down, along with hail the size of golf balls. Snow started to fall, too. The weather reflected on my mood exactly.


	2. Chapter 2

MOTORCYCLES

January came, and one Saturday I found myself walking towards the garage. All of a sudden, I heard a rumbling, almost like thunder, but more mechanical sounding. It sounded a bit like the '53 Chevy truck we gave to Bella when she first came here, before…

Wait. _Was_ it really her, or was I hallucinating? I ran into the living room. I glanced at my dad, who was reading a book in his wheelchair. He didn't look up. I peered out the window, and the _truck was actually there_. Wow.

I dashed out the front door. There she was, driving the truck. She really did look…lifeless. Her skin was so pale, she almost looked like…well, one of _them_. She looked almost like one of those porcelain dolls, thin, fragile, and breakable. Her hair was darker, almost black. But as she got out of the truck, her eyes sparkled with some light, and she smiled a real smile, probably for the first time in months. My face stretched into a grin.

"Hey, Jacob!" She actually sounded enthusiastic, happy for once. I walked toward her, stopping a few feet from the truck. She stared up at me, seeming oblivious to the sheet of rain.

"You grew again!" She marveled. I laughed. I'd forgotten that she hadn't seen me for a while.

"Six-five," I said proudly. She shook her head.

"Is it ever going to stop? You're huge."

I grimaced. The rain was getting in my eyes.

"Still a beanpole, though. Come inside! You're getting all wet."

I led the way, pulling my hair back with the rubber band in my pocket. I ducked under the door. Billy was still reading his novel.

"Hey, Dad, look who stopped by." He set his book in his lap and wheeled forward to greet Bella.

"Well, what do you know! It's good to see you, Bella." They shook hands, my dad's hands swallowing up Bella's tiny, doll-like hands. "What brings you out here? Everything okay with Charlie?" My dad seemed genuinely concerned.

"Yes, absolutely. I just wanted to see Jacob- I haven't seen him in forever." Bella smiled a real smile.  
I felt even happier, flattered that she drove through the rain to see _me_. Of course, I still wondered if she was completely healed inside, though. Billy was happy, too.

"Can you stay for dinner?" I was glad my dad asked; I was wondering how long she was going to stay.

"No, I've got to feed Charlie, you know." She smiled again.

Billy must've wanted her to stay as long as possible, too.

"I'll call him now," Billy hinted. "He's always invited."

Bella laughed. "It's not like you'll never see me again. I promise I'll be back again soon-so much you'll get sick of me."

I smiled even more. That was a good sign-she was going to visit more. I wondered what prompted her to come to me, when she still had her friends from school. Or was she healed now? I decided she came as a friend.

Billy grinned at Bella's answer. "Okay, maybe next time."

Bella turned to me. I spoke first.

"So, Bella, what do you want to do?" She seemed happy enough for anything. I didn't want to bore her, though. I just wanted to make sure she was happy.

"Whatever," she replied. "What were you doing before I interrupted?"

I paused. Would she be bored with mechanical stuff? "I was just heading out to work on my car, but we can do something else…"

"No, that's perfect!" She sounded relieved. "I'd love to see your car."

Um, was she serious? I thought all girls shied away from that kind of stuff. Didn't they prefer shopping, or something? But then, Bella was never girly like that.

"Okay. It's out back, in the garage."

She waved bye to Billy. She said, "See you later," to him.

We walked out the back door, squishing our way through the mud, into the thick foliage that separated the garage from the house. Bella looked around her, then at my almost finished car. She seemed to recognize the symbol on the grille.

"What kind of Volkswagen is that?" I was surprised that she knew what brand it was.

"It's an old Rabbit, 1986, a classic." I hoped she wasn't getting bored. But she asked more about it.

"How's it going?"

I was glad that Billy had given me the money for the parts I needed for crashing Bella's prom last May…to warn her…but now it seemed unnecessary…

"Almost finished." Then I whispered so Billy couldn't hear me. "My dad made good on his promise last spring."

"Ah," was all she replied.

The tension in the air was tangible-she was reluctant to talk more about the subject. Quickly, she changed the topic.

"Jacob, what do you know about motorcycles?" That was kind of random. I thought Charlie hated them. I personally didn't know much about them, though.

"Some," I shrugged. "My friend Embry has a dirt bike. We work on it together sometimes. Why?" I had no idea why she brought it up.

Bella pursed her lips, hesitating. "Well…I recently acquired a couple of bikes, and they're not in the greatest condition. I wonder if you could get them running?"

I smiled at the challenge. "Cool. I'll give it a try."

She held up a thin, pale finger, to caution me. Ah, Charlie.

"The thing is, Charlie doesn't approve of motorcycles. Honestly, he'd probably bust a vein in his forehead if he knew about this. So you can't tell Billy."

Made sense to me. I smiled in understanding. "Sure, sure. I understand."

She continued. "I'll pay you."

No way! If this made her happy, then that would be payment enough. I didn't need her money. Her happiness was all I cared about. I tried to keep my cool.

"No. I want to help. You can't pay me."

"Well…" She paused, thinking. "How about a trade, then? I only need one bike, and I'll need lessons, too. So how about this? I'll give you the other bike, and then you can teach me." I could get my own motorcycle?

"Swee-eet." I couldn't hide my joy.

"Wait a sec," her brow furrowed. "Are you legal yet? When's your birthday?"

I tried to lighten the mood.

"You missed it. I'm sixteen."

She mumbled, "Not that your age ever stopped you before. Sorry about your birthday."

"Don't worry about it. I missed yours." I teased, "What are you, forty?"

She put her nose in the air. "Close."

I grinned. "We'll have a joint party to make up for it."

Bella grinned back. "Sounds like a date."

I felt weightless. She actually said, "date". Maybe…

Then she added, "Maybe when the bikes are finished—our present to ourselves."

Sounded good to me.

"Deal. When will you bring them down?"

She bit her lower lip, blushing a bit. She sure had changed a lot, but she was getting better. "They're in my truck now," she confessed.

"Great," I said, meaning it.

She thought about something.

"Will Billy see if we bring them around?"

I winked. "We'll be sneaky."

We kept close to the trees as we walked towards the front. I saw the motorcycles in the bed of her red truck. Wow, the black one…was it really a Harley?

"These aren't half bad," I evaluated as I unloaded the bikes, wheeling them to Bella where she stood near the greenery. We pushed them around the house, to the garage. I gestured to the black Harley. "This one here will actually be worth something when I'm done-it's an old Harley Sprint."

"That one's yours, then." Really?

"Are you sure?"

She was. "Absolutely."

I looked down at the rusted metal.

"These are going to take some cash, though," I said, frowning. "We'll have to save up for parts first."

She disagreed. "_We_ nothing. If you're doing this for free, I'll pay for the parts."

"I don't know…" I considered.

She seemed determined, however.

"I've got some money saved. College fund, you know."

I just nodded, peering at the bikes.


	3. Chapter 3

CAMARADERIE

We planned to store the motorcycles in the shed out in the backyard. We didn't have to worry about Billy going there; it was mostly concealed with thick, green shrubs. There was so much obsolete junk in there-an old lawnmower, old flower pots, and other banal debris. Plus, Billy's wheelchair couldn't navigate through the uneven ground.

I took the red bike, which would be Bella's, and started pulling it apart. Bella wouldn't be comfortable just sitting on the garage's hard floor, so I opened the passenger door of my almost-finished Rabbit so that she could sit on the seat.

As I worked, asking her to hand me various tools from time to time, we talked about what we had been up to in the past 5 months. I mostly supplied the conversation, telling Bella about my sophomore year, schoolwork, Quil and Embry. I hoped I wasn't monopolizing the conversation, but she seemed to like it that way. She couldn't really volunteer a lot of information from her life, anyway, I noted.

She interrupted me when I was talking about Quil and Embry.

"Quil and Embry? Those are unusual names."

I laughed, and gave her the details.

"Quil's a hand-me-down, and I think Embry got named after a soap opera star." I grinned. "I can't say anything, though. They fight dirty if you start on their names—they'll tag team you."

Bella raised an eyebrow. "Good friends," she said skeptically.

I defended them. "No, they are. Just don't mess with their names."

Out of nowhere, I heard Quil. "Jacob?" he shouted.

_Crap,_ I thought.

Bella was surprised. "Is that Billy?"

I could feel the heat on my face. "No."

I ducked behind the motorcycle. I mumbled, "Speak of the devil, and the devil shall appear."

Embry shouted this time. "Jake? Are you out here?"

I decided to just get it over with. _The sooner, the better._ "Yeah," I shouted back. I sighed.

Bella and I waited for their approach in tense silence. Quil and Embry wandered around the corner of the shed, and walked toward us.

They stopped short the second they spotted Bella sitting in the passenger seat of my Volkswagen. Embry's eyes darted back and forth, between Bella and me. Quil just stared at Bella, his eyes wide.

"Hey, guys," I acknowledged them, sighing internally.

_What are they going to think?_

Quil responded, "Hey, Jake," without taking his eyes off Bella. Bella smiled at him; probably trying to neutralize the atmosphere. When she did, Quil winked at her, saying, "Hi, there." I almost snorted.

I cut into the silence. "Quil, Embry, this is my friend, Bella."

I saw Quil and Embry look at each other knowingly.

Quil extended his hand to Bella, asking her, "Charlie's kid, right?"

"That's right," Bella answered, shaking Quil's hand. I almost started laughing right then and there; Quil was flexing, trying to impress Bella. _Yeah, right, Quil_.

"I'm Quil Ateara," Quil proclaimed with a flourish, then let go of Bella's hand.

"Nice to meet you, Quil," Bella said, flexing her fingers.

Embry finally decided it was his turn to introduce himself. "Hey, Bella. I'm Embry, Embry Call—you probably already figured that out, though." Embry was too shy to shake Bella's hand.

Bella nodded. "Nice to meet you, too."

Quil was still staring at Bella when he spoke again. "So whatcha guys doing?"

I decided to tell the truth; might as well.

"Bella and I are going to fix up these bikes." The second I said, "bikes", Quil and Embry's faces lit up, and immediately shot at me questions on the gears, the makes, models, and how old they were.

Suddenly, Bella sighed, and pulled herself out of my Rabbit. Oops, I'd forgotten that this kind of stuff was out of her range.

"We're boring you, aren't we?" I hoped she wouldn't leave; I wished Quil and Embry would leave.

"Naw," Bella replied. "I just have to go cook dinner for Charlie." Well, that was okay.

"Oh…well, I'll finish taking these apart tonight and figure out what more we'll need to get started rebuilding them. When do you want to work on them again?" I asked her.

"Could I come back tomorrow?" Bella asked hopefully.

Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed Quil elbowing Embry, and they smirked at each other. I just ignored them.

I smiled. "That would be great!"

"If you make a list, we can go shop for parts."

It still didn't seem right for Bella to use her hard-earned money on motorcycles.

"I'm still not sure I should let you pay for everything."

Bella was adamant, shaking her head, saying, "No way. I'm bankrolling this party. You just have to supply the labor and expertise."

Embry rolled his eyes at Quil.

I shook my head. "That still doesn't seem right."

"Jake, if I took these to a mechanic, how much would he charge me?" _Well, when you put it that way…_

"Okay, you're getting a deal."

"Not to mention the riding lessons," she reminded me.

Quil smirked even more at Embry, and whispered something that sounded like, "Think I have a shot?" I smacked the back of Quil's head. "That's it, get out," I told them.

"No, really, I have to go," Bella headed for the door. "I'll see you tomorrow, Jacob."

The second she stepped out of the shed, Quil and Embry shouted, "Wooooo!" right in my ear. I punched them both, and they struggled back. I twisted their arms so they couldn't move, and threatened them with, "If either of you set so much as one toe on my land tomorrow…" I trailed off, letting them get the idea.

They both nodded, though the second I let them go, they sneered at me knowingly. _Ugh_. _Whatever._ I turned my attention back to the bikes.

The next morning, Sunday, while I was eating my breakfast, the phone ran. Billy picked up. It was Charlie, inviting him up to Forks for a hockey game. Bella would be coming soon. I smiled. I bet Bella was the one who suggested that to Charlie.

I waited for Bella; the thunderous volume of her truck would tell me of her approach.

I heard her truck, and took the black umbrella by the front door, opening it as I made my way through the icy rain. I held the umbrella over Bella's head while she climbed out of the truck. I explained, "Charlie called—said you were on your way."

Bella smiled a real smile. "Hi, Jacob."

"Good call on inviting Billy up," I said, offering a high five. She had to jump up in the air to reach my hand; that made me laugh.

I heard Harry Clearwater's car drive up to take Billy to Charlie. While we waited for them to leave, I showed Bella around our small house.

When everyone left, Bella asked, "So where to, Mr. Goodwrench?"

I pulled the map out of my back pocket and smoothed out the paper. "We'll start at the dump first, see if we can get lucky. This could get a little expensive," I added. "Those bikes are going to need a lot of help before they'll run again." Bella didn't seem too concerned, so I told her the cost. "I'm talking about maybe more than a hundred dollars here."

Bella took a checkbook out of her coat pocket, fanned the air with it, and rolled her eyes at me. "We're covered," she replied coolly.

She climbed into the driver's seat, I settled into the passenger side. There was a gaping hole, smack in the middle of the dashboard. What happened to it?

"Did the stereo break?" I wondered out loud.

"Yeah," Bella admitted.

I touched the empty space, inspecting the damaged wires. "Who took it out? There's a lot of damage…"

"I did," Bella confessed. I laughed; I would have guess as much.

"Maybe you shouldn't touch the motorcycles too much," I said jokingly.

"No problem," she answered.

We got to the dump eventually; and we actually got lucky- we found some disc brakes that were covered in black grease, but were in reasonable shape. Then we drove to the Checker Auto Parts in Hoquiam; this was a two and a half hour drive in the Chevy; it never went over 55 mph. I supplied most of the conversation again, but Bella asked more questions, seeming genuinely curious about the little details of my life.

After I told her all about Quil's disastrous yet hilarious story that consisted of him being over-confident and asking out a senior's girlfriend, I became a bit self-conscious that I had been dominating the conversation.

"I'm doing all the talking. Why don't you take a turn?" I started asking her questions. "What's going on in Forks? It has to be more exciting than La Push."

Bella sighed. "Wrong. There's really nothing. Your friends are a lot more interesting than mine. I like your friends. Quil's funny."

Uh oh. "I think Quil likes you, too."

Bella just laughed. "He's a little young for me."

Well, if Quil was "a little young" for her, than so was I. Could I change her mind?

"He's not that much younger than you. It's just a year and a few months." I tried to keep my voice light.

Bella's tone mimicked mine.

"Sure, but, considering the difference in maturity between guys and girls, don't you have to count that in dog years?" she teased. She continued, "What does that make me, about twelve years older?"

I laughed. Yeah, right. I mean, look at the size of her! I rolled my eyes. I said just as much.

"Okay, but if you're going to get picky like that, you have to average in size, too." That would definitely get me an edge. "You're so small, I'll have to knock off ten years off your total."

Bella was miffed. "Five foot four is perfectly average. It's not my fault you're a freak."

I had to laugh at that. We debated over the correct way to determine a person's age while driving to Checker. It turned out that she did the taxes at Charlie's, cooked the meals, but didn't know how to change a tire (this was expected, though). I was winning, though, what with my mad skills at cars. I was sure I was at least older than Bella.

By the time we arrived at Checker, I was twenty-five; Bella was twenty. So far, sweet.

We picked around the used auto parts, until we found some gear shifts, but that was pretty much it for Checker. The gear shifts were a crucial part to the motorcycles, though, so at least that was a big step forward in progress.

We drove back to La Push, bickering like an old married couple, still arguing lightly on how old we truly were. By the time Bella turned into my driveway, she was twenty-three, and I was thirty. Ha.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Hi, so sorry for not updating since winter break! stupid school. :) This gives some more insight to (my interpretation) Jacob's thoughts. :)

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It turned out that my dad wasn't back from the hockey game yet, so we didn't have to get all _Mission Impossible_ and sneak around the side of the house, praying we didn't get caught. I laid all my tools as well as the stuff we'd bought on a plastic sheet on the garage floor. I got to work, and we talked and laughed comfortably. I almost forgot where I was for a moment; I was so happy. I tried to mostly focus on my work so I wouldn't suddenly hug Bella for making me so happy, or something stupid like that. She seemed content with just talking with me as I worked. Her laughter and her voice sounded natural to me, but a tiny voice inside my head warned me that Bella's smile and laugh were not the same as they were when we first met, over a year ago. I tried to ignore the pessimistic voice.

All too soon, I heard Billy's voice telling us to get out of the rain. Crap, I didn't even notice that the sky was darkening and that it was pouring. Bella jumped from her spot in my car and sat next to me, probably to help put my tools away, but her hands just hovered over the tools, unsure of what to pick up.

I relieved her of her misery. "Just leave it. I'll work on it later tonight."

"Don't forget your schoolwork or anything," Bella said, just a bit guiltily. Aw, she cared that I was being responsible. I turned to hug her, but just then—

"Bella!" Charlie's voice sounded like he was near the backyard, closer to us than Billy. Oops.

"Shoot," Bella blushed, but I couldn't tell for sure, since the light was too dim. "Coming!" she yelled in Charlie's direction.

I smiled, enjoying the adrenaline rush of not being caught and sneaking around. "Let's go," I told Bella, and took her hand, flipping the light off at the same time. We darted around the garage, through the trees. Her hand felt so small in mine, like a breakable, fragile, doll's. Bella's skin tone contrasted beautifully with mine. I tried to focus more on not tripping over her; it was so dark already. We ended up bumping into each other, and broke into a fit of laughter.

Charlie stood, with my dad in his wheelchair, on the back porch, waiting for us.

Bella and I greeted our dads at the same time. "Hey, Dad." This made us break into spontaneous laughter again. It felt nice to help Bella laugh again.

I noticed the chief gawking at our intertwined hands. I grinned involuntarily—I knew that Charlie preferred me over that pale leech.

Charlie broke the silence. "Billy invited us for dinner." He talked simply, sounding as though he had something on his mind. I knew that Charlie approved of me, way more than he did the bloodsucker. I tried to keep the smirk off my face. Then my dad started talking.

"My super secret recipe for spaghetti. Handed down for generations." He told us, trying to sound serious. _Yeah, right, Dad_.

I snorted. "I don't think Ragu's actually been around that long."

We all walked into our small house. Bella's hand was still in mine. Was this an unconscious action for her? I didn't want to disrupt the moment. It felt natural. Did it feel like that for Bella too?

The Clearwaters were there—Harry, Sue, and their kids Leah and Seth. Leah was 19 and Seth was 14. Seth tagged around me for the rest of the night. I mostly talked to him and Bella. I'd vaguely noticed that Bella had taken her hand back when I introduced the Clearwaters to her.

Since the kitchen was way too small to squeeze in more than 5 people, we dragged several mismatched chairs out to the backyard. It wasn't too cold, but I didn't care, as long as I sat with Bella. She smile a lot during dinner.

Eventually it started to rain—no, it started to _pour_. We all darted back into our house, towing the chairs with us before they got wet. It was around 9 PM that everyone started to leave; they were anxious to get home before the rain _really_ started to get vicious. Bella drove home with her father in the rusty '53 Chevy. I smiled to myself. Billy noticed, but didn't say anything.


	5. Chapter 5

**Oh. My. God. I _sincerely_ apologize to everyone reading this for not writing anything Twilight-related in the past year or so. I hope everyone can forgive me by reading on and writing reviews.**  


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ORANGE SODA

_Ugh, Monday_ was the first thing I thought when I hammered on my stupid alarm clock. The annoying buzzing sound was the only thing that woke me up; when I was younger, Dad tried to get me up, but that ended…badly. Heh.

I went through my usual morning routine, not bothering to tie my hair up, the way Bella seemed to like it.

School seemed to drag by really slowly…was that because I was so bored of it, or because of something else?

When I got home, I quickly took a shower, inhaled two bowls of cereal, and rushed to the garage, trying to get some more work done on the motorcycles, so that they would look a little more presentable when Bella came over.

I sat outside on the damp moss in front of the house, waiting for Bella. I hoped the rain wouldn't start soon. Thankfully, around 5:30, she came, the rusty red Chevy being a harbinger of her arrival. I smiled a little to myself. I turned around, towards the living room window, where Dad was sitting reading the newspaper in his wheelchair. He hadn't bothered to turn around, despite the loud rumbling of the truck.

Bella got out of the truck, almost slipping on the wet pavement. Sigh. She was just so cute, like a true damsel in distress. Whoa. Where was all this mushy love talk coming from? This was _not_ me. Must be my stupid pituitary gland talking.

I greeted Bella as she walked cautiously towards the house.

"Hey, Bella."

Bella smiled a real, beautiful smile. It was great to see her smile again. Was I the cause? Was it friendly? Or more? _Naw_. Must be platonic. She doesn't like you _that_ way. She was still on the rebound from that pale leech.

"Hey, Jacob!" Bella waved behind me, probably at Billy in the living room.

"Let's get to work," I murmured when she got close enough. I tried to contain my excitement.

Bella laughed. "You seriously aren't sick of me yet?"

I waited while we were walking around the house towards the garage before I answered her so I could calm myself.

"Nope. Not yet."

Bella added, "Please let me know when I start getting on your nerves. I don't want to be a pain."

A pain?? Was she serious? She was a lot quieter, and more grounded than the rest of the girls at my school. It was nice being around her. She was like the perfect girl.

"Okay." I tried laughing to lighten my mood a bit. "I wouldn't hold your breath for that, though."

I flicked on the light switch. Bella gasped, startling me a bit, until she whispered, "Jake, you're amazing." I almost hugged her for saying that. But then I remembered again—no touching. Entirely platonic. Platonic. Right.

I laughed, explaining, "I get obsessive when I have a project. If I had any brains I'd drag it out a little bit." Oh crap, did I really just say that?

Bella looked confused. "Why?"

I looked down at the bikes, trying to conceal my blush. I didn't want to make it too obvious that I wanted to prolong the process of fixing up the bikes just to have Bella around for it. But she was still waiting for an answer. I decided to go for a hypothetical situation.

"Bella, if I told you that I couldn't fix these bikes, what would you say?" I asked her, praying my face was its normal shade of tan.

Bella replied, "I would say…that's too bad, but I'll bet we could figure out something else to do. If we got really desperate, we could even do homework."

I could feel my face stretch into a huge grin. I sat down on my workbench and picked up my rusted wrench, staring at it. "So you think you'll still come over when I'm done, then?" hoping she'd say yes.

"Is that what you meant?" Bella shook her head. "I guess I _am_ taking advantage of your very underpriced mechanical skills. But as long as you let me come over, I'll be here." Sweeeet.

I teased, "Hoping to see Quil again?"

Bella joked, "You caught me." I snorted at that.

"You really like spending time with me?" I wondered.

"Very, very much." Huge sigh of relief. I hadn't realized I was holding my breath. Bella didn't seem to notice, and continued. "And I'll prove it. I have to work tomorrow, but Wednesday we'll do something non-mechanical."

Like what? Like a movie? No… "Like what?" I inquired out loud.

Bella thought for a brief second. "I have no idea. We can go to my place so you won't be tempted to be obsessive…" I'd have to keep my mouth shut around the guys; they'd make me think Bella was into me or something. "…you could bring your schoolwork—you have to be getting behind, because I know I am."

I made a face to try and convince Bella that I didn't like homework, but honestly, I was just ecstatic that she wanted to spend time with me—it didn't matter _what_ we were doing. "Homework might be a good idea," I added to further help my charade.

"Yes," Bella agreed. "We'll have to start being responsible occasionally," of course, "or Billy and Charlie aren't going to be so easygoing about this." Bella swept her hand around, indicating that "this" meant "us". I couldn't keep the smile off my face.

"Homework…once a week?" I suggested.

"Maybe we'd better go with twice a week," Bella sighed.

I sighed, too. Well, then again, we _did_ have normal responsibilities, just like everyone else in the world. I reached for my toolbox, shoved it out of the way, and pulled out the Thriftway paper bag. I pulled out the warm cans of orange soda, cracking one open and giving it to Bella. I kept the sodas in the garage in case I ever got thirsty working in the garage. I cracked my own soda can open, and made a toast.

"Here's to responsibility, twice a week."

Bella's eyes glinted mischievously. "And recklessness every day in between," she added.

I grinned, and we clinked our cans together.


End file.
